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Obama’s election found that blacks were more likely to view President Obama as
black (55 percent) rather than mixed race (34 percent).
• Some views held consistently by whites are not necessarily shared by other groups.
o And some cultural practices and core symbols (e.g., individualism) are expressed
primarily by whites and significantly less by members of minority groups.
o These cultural practices are most clearly visible to those who are not white, to
those groups who are excluded (Bahk & Jandt, 2004).
F. Religious Identity
• Religious identity can be an important dimension of many people’s identities, as well
as an important site of intercultural conflict.
• Religious identity often is conflated with racial or ethnic identity, which makes it
difficult to view religious identity simply in terms of belonging to a particular religion.
• Drawing distinctions among various identities—racial, ethnic, class, national, and
regional—can be problematic.
imposed on others who may not share those beliefs.
• People in some religions communicate and mark their religious differences by their
clothing.
G. Class Identity
• People don’t often think about socioeconomic class as an important part of their
status—operate in U.S. society.
• At some level, people recognize these class distinctions, but they consider it impolite to
ask directly about a person’s class background.
o Therefore, one may use communication strategies to place others in a class
hierarchy.
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that such class divisions exist.
• Another reason for this apparent contradiction is that people in the majority or
normative class (the middle class) tend not to think about class, whereas those in the
working class are often reminded that their communication styles and lifestyle choices
Great Recession.
• The point is that although class identity is not as readily apparent as, say, gender
identity, it still influences people’s perceptions of and communication with others.
H. National Identity
• Among many identities, individuals also have a national identity, which should not be
abolishing censorship, set up a telephone number where anyone worldwide can
call and speak directly to a Swede.
• In sum, people have various ways of thinking about nationality, and they sometimes
confuse nationality and ethnicity.
I. Regional Identity
• Although some regional identities can fuel national independence movements, they
more often reflect cultural identities that affirm distinctive cuisine, dress, manners, and
language.
o These identities may become important in intercultural communication situations.
• One fairly recent variation in regional identities has to do with the degree of diversity
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diverse, along with the coastal Northeast. The Midwest, in contrast, with a few
exceptions, remains relatively homogenous (Brewer & Suchan, 2001, pp. 22–23).
IV. Personal Identity
• Many issues of identity are closely tied to individuals’ notions of self.
o People have many identities, and these can conflict.
• One’s personal identities are important to one, and one tries to communicate them to
others.
o People are more or less successful depending on how others respond to them.
o They use the various ways that identity is constructed to portray themselves as they
want others to see them.
V. Multicultural People
• Multicultural people, a group currently dramatically increasing in number, are those who
live “on the borders” of two or more cultures.
o They often struggle to reconcile two very different sets of values, norms,
worldviews, and lifestyles.
o Some are multicultural as a result of being born to parents from different racial,
ethnic, religious, or national cultures or they were adopted into families that are
racially different from their own family of origin.
o Others are multicultural because their parents lived overseas and they grew up in
children may cycle through three stages:
o Awareness of differentness and resulting dissonance: In the first stage, multiracial
children realize that they are different from other children—they may feel that they
don’t fit in anywhere.
o Struggle for acceptance: At the next stage, struggle for acceptance, multiracial
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multiracial individuals may reach the third stage, of self-acceptance and self-
assertion.
• Individuals develop multicultural identities for other reasons.
o For example, global nomads (or third-culture kids—TCKs) grow up in many
arrived in the United States since 1990.
• Social psychologist Peter Adler (1974) describes the multicultural person as someone who
comes to grips with a multiplicity of realities.
o This individual’s identity is not defined by a sense of belonging; rather, it is a new
psychocultural form of consciousness.
o A third stage occurs when people minimize the effects of difference.
o In the fourth phase (acceptance), people accept the notion of cultural difference; in
the fifth phase (adaptation), they may change their own behavior to adapt to others.
o The final phase (integration) is similar to Peter Adler’s (1974) notion of a
“multicultural person.”
o Encapsulated marginals, who become trapped by their own marginality
o Constructive marginals, who thrive in their marginality.
• Encapsulated marginals have difficulty making decisions, are troubled by ambiguity, and
feel pressure from both groups.
o They try to assimilate but never feel comfortable, never feel “at home.”
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VI. Identity, Stereotypes, and Prejudice
• The identity characteristics described in this chapter sometimes form the basis for
stereotypes, prejudice, and racism.
• To make sense out of the overwhelming amount of information people receive, they
▪ This stereotype became particularly prevalent in the United States during the
civil rights movement of the 1960s and 1970s.
• Even positive stereotypes can be damaging in that they create unrealistic expectations for
individuals.
• Stereotypes can also develop out of negative experiences.
o Whereas stereotypes tell one what a group is like, prejudice tells one how one is
likely to feel about that group (Newberg, 1994).
• One communicative practice in which people express their prejudices is called
microaggressions.
o Microaggressions “are subtle insults (verbal, nonverbal, and/or visual) directed
o The utilitarian function: People hold certain prejudices because they can lead to
rewards.
o The ego-defensive function: People hold certain prejudices because they don’t want
to believe unpleasant things about themselves.
o The value-expressive function. People hold certain prejudices because they serve to
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VII. Identity and Communication
• Identity has a profound influence on intercultural communication processes.
o One can use the individual–cultural dynamic to examine the issues that arise when
Discussion Questions
1. How do our perceptions of our cultural identities influence our communication with
others?
2. How does being white affect one’s experience in the United States?
3. What are the roles of avowal and ascription in the process of identity formation?
4. What are some of the ways in which members of minority cultures and members of
majority cultures develop their cultural identities?
5. What are some of the ways in which we express our identities?
6. How do you feel when someone does not recognize the identity that is the most important
to you?
7. How and why do people identify with particular groups and not others?
8. How does popular culture create or influence certain identities?
9. How does being White affect people’s experiences in the United States?
10. If we never talk about race but only about ethnicity, can we consider the effects and
influences of racism?
11. What does it mean to be “middle class” versus “working class” in U.S. society?
12. Why do people who make cultural transitions experience culture shock?
13. Why are adaptations to cultures difficult for some people and easier for others?
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14. What do we mean when we say that our identities are negotiated through communication?
15. Can you think of a time when you resisted a negative identity that was assigned to you?
What did you do or say? Were you successful?
16. Are people comfortable talking about race? Why, or why not?
17. What are some terms that you hear in everyday interactions that mark class differences?
18. How might a biracial individual decide which race to put down on a college registration
form? Which one might she or he omit? Why? How would that decision be made?
19. Have you ever been in a situation in which you felt that you were living “on the border”?
20. What labels do you use to describe yourself?
21. At what stage are you in your identity development process? Justify your answer
22. What experiences or people have influenced your identity development process?
Classroom Exercises and Chapter Activities
1. Multiple Identities Exercise: Have students list labels they would use to identify who they
are to others. Ask several students to read their lists, and then, ask the class what they
2. Race and Ethnicity Exercise: Ask the students to write down a definition of race, and then,
have them read their definitions to the class. As they read them, write each different
3. Identity Model Exercise: This exercise is designed to help students improve their
understanding of their identities. Ask the students to draw pictures or create models that
4. Socially and Politically Assigned Identities and Self-Assigned Identities Exercise: This
exercise will help students understand the difference between socially and politically
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Chapter 5: Identity and Intercultural Communication
© 2018 by McGraw-Hill Education. This is proprietary material solely for authorized instructor use. Not authorized for sale or distribution in any
manner. This document may not be copied, scanned, duplicated, forwarded, distributed, or posted on a website, in whole or part.
politically assigned identities and under what circumstances they acquired them. Finally,
ask students to indicate any actions that they or others may have taken to resist any of their
socially and politically assigned identities.
5. Video Identity Exercise: The goal of this exercise is to have students think about and
explore their identities by showing the video Skin Deep: College Students Confront
6. Identity Awareness Activity: This activity is designed to help students think about
situations in which they become conscious of their identities. You can choose which
identity or identities you want to work with in this exercise. Instruct students to write down
the answers to the following questions, but tell them that they will not be required to hand
7. Power and Privilege Exercise, “Stand Up”: This exercise allows students to identify
themselves as belonging to a particular group or groups by standing up when a particular
statement pertains to them. It is designed to bring awareness about the types of privilege
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Chapter 5: Identity and Intercultural Communication
Stand up if any of the following statements are true for you:
• You were born in the United States.
• You are an only child.
8. Guest Lecture Exercise: Find two individuals from your college or your community who
are immigrants to the United States or who are from the United States but have lived
9. Journal Entry: If you are using journals to facilitate application of the concepts from this
10. Outcomes Assessment: At the end of the course, you may wish to ask your students to
trace the progress in their identity development process (using the stage models presented
1. Still Killing Us Softly: Advertising’s Image of Women (Produced by Jean Kilbourne;
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Chapter 5: Identity and Intercultural Communication
distributed by Cambridge Documentary Films, Cambridge, MA, 1987, 31 minutes and 52
2. Eye of the Storm (Distributed by ABC, 1970, 25 minutes)
3. When Billy Broke His Head . . . and Other Tales of Wonder (Distributed by Fanlight
Productions, 1994, 57 minutes)
4. Mirrors of Privilege: Making Whiteness Visible (Color DVD Video. Distributed by World
Trust Educational Services, Inc. http://world-trust.org/product/mirrors-privilege-making-
5. Color Adjustment (Distributed by California Newsreel, San Francisco, 1991, Part I, 48
6. My America . . . or Honk if You Love Buddha (Distributed by Sai Communications, Ho-
7. Skin Deep: College Students Confront Racism (Distributed by Iris Films, Ho-Ho-Kus, NT,
1995, 53 minutes)
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Chapter 5: Identity and Intercultural Communication
© 2018 by McGraw-Hill Education. This is proprietary material solely for authorized instructor use. Not authorized for sale or distribution in any
manner. This document may not be copied, scanned, duplicated, forwarded, distributed, or posted on a website, in whole or part.
This film by Francis Reid documents the thoughts and feelings of several college students
spending a weekend retreat together. It addresses issues of racism, prejudice, and cultural
difference as seen through the eyes of this very diverse group.
8. True Colors (Produced and distributed by MTI Film and Video, North Brook, IL, 1991, 19
the 1960s by testing various levels of prejudice based on skin color.
9. The Way of the Willow (Produced by Beacon Films, distributed by Modern Educational
Video Network, New York, 1992, 29 minutes)
10. People Like Us: Social Class in America (Distributed by the Center for New American
Media, Harriman, New York, 2001, 124 minutes)
This film begins with a discussion of how social class determines opportunity as much as